What Happened in May 1939

Historical Events

Batman Appears!

May 1 Batman first appears in Detective Comics #27

Cover page of Detective Comics #27, the first comic in which Batman appeared

May 1 Pulitzer Prize awarded to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings for "The Yearling"

Sports History

May 2 New York Yankee Lou Gehrig ends 2,130 consecutive game streak, Yanks beat Detroit Tigers 22-2

May 3 The All India Forward Bloc is formed by Subhash Chandra Bose
May 6 65th Kentucky Derby: James Stout aboard Johnstown wins in 2:03.4
May 8 Archaeologist James Brown begins excavating at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, goes on to find a royal 7th century Anglo-Saxon burial ship - the great archeological discovery on British soil [1]
May 13 64th Preakness: George Seabo aboard Challedon wins in 1:59.8
May 13 SS St Louis departs Hamburg, Germany with 937 Jewish refugees, bound for Havana, Cuba; authorities refused to admit them, and most of the passengers returned to Europe [1]
May 14 Lina Medina of Peru becomes the world's youngest confirmed mother in medical history at the age of five
May 16 1st AL night game, Philadelphia Shribe Park (Indians 8, Athletics 3 in 10)
May 16 US food stamps are 1st issued in Rochester, New York
May 17 1st televised baseball game is broadcast on NBC, with Princeton University defeating Columbia University 2-1

Glenn Miller Orchestra

May 17 The Glenn Miller Orchestra begins a three month engagement at the Glen Island Casino in New Rochelle, New York

Big Band Leader and Jazz Composer Glenn Miller

May 20 "3 Little Fishies" by Kay Kyser swam to #1
May 20 1st regular transatlantic airmail (Pan Am: NY to Marsseille France)

Pact of Steel

May 22 Germany's Adolf Hitler and Italy's Benito Mussolini sign the "Pact of Steel" formalizing the 1936 alliance known as the Rome-Berlin Axis

Hitler's Plans for Poland

May 23 Adolf Hitler proclaims he wants to move into Poland

May 23 British parliament plans to make Palestine independent by 1949

Shostakovich Becomes a Professor

May 23 Dmitri Shostakovich appointed professor at conservatory of Leningrad

May 23 Submarine USS Squalus sinks in the Gulf of Maine, drowning 26, 33 remaining crew rescued from a depth of 243 ft (74 m) by divers using newly developed heliox air systems (divers later awarded the Medal of Honor)
May 25 Carl Storck becomes 2nd NFL president
May 30 Indianapolis 500: Reigning champion Floyd Roberts is killed in crash on lap 109; Wilbur Shaw wins his second of 3 Indy 500 titles

Events in 1939

Famous Birthdays

May 1 Frank Beard, American golfer (11 PGA Tour titles; US Open 1965, 75 3rd), born in Dallas, Texas
May 1 Judy Collins, American Grammy Award-winning eclectic singer (Send in the Clowns; Both Sides Now), writer, and activist, born in Seattle, Washington

Max Robinson (1939-1988)

May 1 1st African American network TV anchor (ABC), born in Richmond, Virginia

May 1 Ray Aranha, American actor (Nick-Married People), born in Miami, Florida
May 2 Ernesto Castano, Italian soccer defender (7 caps; Juventus 265 games), born in Cinisello Balsamo, Italy (d. 2023)
May 2 Gates Brown, American MLB outfielder (Detroit Tigers: 1963-75), born in Crestline, Ohio (d. 2013)
May 2 Sumio Iijima, Japanese physicist, born in Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
May 2 Tony Asher, English-American lyricist ("God Only Knows"; "Wouldn't It Be Nice"; "That's Life"), born in London, England
May 3 Aydın Yelken, Turkish soccer forward (9 caps; Karagümrük, Fenerbahçe, Altay, İzmirspor), born in İstanbul, Turkey (d. 2022)
May 3 Jonathan Harvey, English composer (Bhakti, Music of Stockhausen), born in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham (d. 2012)
May 4 Amos Oz, Israeli author (My Michael), born in Jerusalem
May 4 Paul Gleason, American actor (Breakfast Club, Die Hard), born in Jersey City, New Jersey (d. 2006)
May 5 Cesare Fiorio, Italian sporting director of various Formula One teams, born in Turin, Italy
May 5 James R. Jones, American lawyer and politician (U.S. Ambassador to Mexico), born in Muskogee, Oklahoma
May 6 Anthony Blacker, Master-General of Ordnance
May 6 Chet Allen, American child actor (Amahl and the Night Visitors), born in Chickasha Oklahoma (d. 1984)
May 6 Herbie Cox, American pop vocalist (Cleftones - "Heart And Soul"), born in Cincinnati, Ohio
May 6 Zhanna Yorkina, Russian cosmonaut, born in Soltsy, Russia (d. 2015)
May 7 Johnny Maestro, American rock vocalist (Crests - "16 Candles"; Brooklyn Bridge), born in Manhattan, New York (d. 2010)
May 7 José Antonio Abreu, Venezuelan conductor, pianist and teacher (El Sistema), born in Valera, Venezuela (d. 2018)
May 7 Marco St John, American actor (Rayford-Ball Four), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
May 7 Ruud Lubbers, Dutch politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1982-94), born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 2018)
May 7 Sidney Altman, Canadian-American molecular biologist (Nobel 1989), born in Montreal, Quebec
May 7 Volker Braun, German writer (Provocation for me), born in Dresden, Germany
May 8 János Göröcs, Hungarian soccer midfielder (62 caps; Újpesti Dózsa, Tatabányai Bányász), born in Gánt, Hungary (d. 2020)
May 8 Paul Drayton, American athlete (Olympic gold 4x100m relay 1964), born in Glen Cove, New York (d. 2010)
May 9 Bruce Mather, Canadian pianist and composer, born in Toronto, Ontario
May 9 Herbert Hippauf, baseball player
May 9 Ion Ţiriac, Romanian tennis manager
May 9 Ken Warby, Australian motorboat racer (water speed record 275.97 knots [511.10 km/h; 317.58 mph 1978]), born in Newcastle, Australia (d. 2023)
May 9 Pierre Desproges, French humorist (d. 1988)

Ralph Boston (1939-2023)

May 9 American athlete (Olympic gold long jump 1960, silver 1964, bronze 1968; first to break 27 feet [8.2m] barrier), born in Laurel, Mississippi

May 11 Milt Pappas, American baseball pitcher, (3-time MLB All Star), born in Detroit, Michigan (d. 2016)
May 12 Charles Hull, American inventor (3D printing), born in Clifton, Colorado [1]
May 12 Reg Gasnier, Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame centre and captain (36 Tests; 3 World Cups; St. George RLFC), born in Sydney, Australia (d. 2014)
May 12 Ron Ziegler, American White House press secretary for Nixon, born in Covington, Kentucky (d. 2003)
May 13 Bill Cobey, American politician (Rep-R-NC, 1985-87), born in Washington D.C.
May 13 Harvey Keitel, American actor (Taxi Driver, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs), born in New York City
May 13 Hildrun Laufer-Claus, German long jumper, born in Dresden, Germany
May 14 M N Fathulin, cosmonaut
May 14 Troy Shondell, American singer ("This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up)"), born in Fort Wayne, Indiana (d. 2016)
May 15 Brian Hartley, British mathematician (group theory) (d. 1994)
May 15 Dudley Wysong, American golfer (PGA C'ship 1966 runner-up), born in McKinney, Texas (d. 1998)
May 17 Gary Paulsen, American author of young adult literature, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (d. 2021)
May 17 Wim de Bie, Dutch comedian, satirist, and writer (van Kooten & de Bie - The Simplistic Covenant), born in The Hague, Netherlands (d. 2023)
May 18 Gary S. Paxton [Larry Wayne Stevens], American musician and songwriter ("Monster Mash"; "Alley Oop)', born in Coffeyville, Kansas (d. 2016)
May 18 Giovanni Falcone, Italian magistrate, and organized crime prosecutor, born in La Kalsa, Palermo, Kingdom of Italy (d. 1992)
May 18 Gordon O'Connor, Canadian politician, born in Toronto, Ontario
May 18 Neil McCarthy, American college basketball coach (Weber State Uni 1974-85, New Mexico State Uni 1985-97), born in San Francisco, California (d. 2021)
May 18 Patrick Cormack, British politician (C), born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire
May 19 (Cornelius) "Sonny" Fortune, American jazz saxophonist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 2018)
May 19 Dick Scobee, American pilot and astronaut (STS 41C, killed commanding Space Shuttle Challenger), born in Cle Elum, Washington (d. 1986)
May 19 Henry Herbert, 17th earl of Pembroke, English peer and director (Emily) (d. 2003)
May 19 James Fox, English actor (The Servant), born in London, England
May 19 Jānis Lūsis, Latvian athlete (Olympic gold men's javelin 1968, silver 1972, bronze 1968), born in Jelgava, Latvia (d. 2020)
May 19 Livio Berruti, Italian athlete
May 19 Nancy Kwan, Hong Kong-born American actress (Flower Drum Song, World of Suzie Wong), born in Hong Kong
May 19 Richard Lowe Teitelbaum, American composer, born in New York City
May 19 Tomasz Sikorski, Polish minimalist composer (Solitude of Sounds), born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 1988)
May 20 María Luisa Ozaita, Spanish pianist, harpsichordist, musicologist, conductor, and composer (Pelleas y Melisanda), born in Baracaldo, Spain (d. 2017)
May 21 Heinz Holliger, Swiss composer, oboist and conductor, born in Langenthal, Switzerland
May 21 Raúl Madero, Argentine soccer defender (5 caps; Estudiantes) and sports physician (Argentina national team), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 2021)
May 22 Árni Egilsson, Icelandic classical and jazz bassist and composer, born in Reykjavík, Iceland
May 22 Ian Underwood, American musician (Frank Zappa), born in New York City
May 23 Marvin Stamm, American jazz and session trumpeter, and flugelhorn player (Stan Kenton; Woody Herman; Thad Jones/Mel Lewis; Paul McCartney - "Uncle Albert"), born in Memphis, Tennessee
May 23 Michel Colombier, French composer of film and concert music (Against All Odds), born in Lyon, France (d. 2004)
May 24 Clint Miller, American rockabilly singer ("Bertha Lou"), and politician (Virginia House of Representatives, 1972-96), born in Ferguson, North Carolina
May 24 Gert Schutte, Dutch politician (GPV), born in Nieuwpoort, Netherlands
May 25 Dixie Carter, American actress (Designing Women, Edge of Night), born in McLemoresville, Tennessee (d. 2010)
May 25 Gene A. Budig, American baseball executive (last American League [AL] president 1994-99), born in McCook, Nebraska (d. 2020)

Ian McKellen (84 years old)

May 25 English film and theatre actor (Lord of the Rings; X-Men), born in Burnley Lancashire

May 26 Brent Musburger, American sportscaster (CBS Sports, The NFL Today; ESPN, ABC; VSiN; radio play-by-play Las Vegas Raiders), born in Portland, Oregon
May 26 Gerald Ronson, English multi-millionaire
May 26 Merab Kostava, Georgian anti-Soviet leader
May 27 Donald "Don" Williams, American country singer ("I Believe in You"), born in Floydada Texas (d. 2017)
May 27 Earl Cairns, CEO (S G Warburg & Co)
May 27 Frank Bidart, American poet and academic (Half-light Collected Poems - Pulitzer Prize for Poetry 2018), born in Bakersfield, California
May 27 Leo LeBlanc, American country musician and pianist who was legally blind, born in Worcester, Massachusetts (d. 1995)
May 27 Socratis Kokkalis, Greek businessman

Al Unser (1939-2021)

May 29 American auto racer (Indianapolis 500 1970-71, 78, 87), born in Albuquerque, New Mexico

May 30 Dieter Quester, Austrian racing driver, born in Vienna, Austria
May 30 Michael J Pollard [Pollack], American character actor (Bonnie & Clyde; Roxanne), born in Passaic, New Jersey (d. 2019)
May 31 Charles Drain, American soul singer, born in Eupora, Mississippi (d. 1995)
May 31 Terry Waite, English Anglican Church envoy/Lebanese hostage, born in Bollington, Cheshire

Born in 1939

Famous Weddings

Menachem Begin

May 29 Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin (25) weds Aliza Arnold

Famous Deaths

May 3 [Karl Eduard] Wilhelm Groener, German general, dies at 71
May 11 Yevgeny Miller [Eugen Ludwig Müller], Baltic German general and a leader of the anticommunist White Army during and after the Russian Civil War, executed at 71 after being kidnapped in Paris by Soviet intelligence and taken to Moscow where he was tortured and eventually shot
May 13 Stanislaw Lesniewski, Polish logician and mathematician (Warsaw School of Logic), dies at 53
May 13 Wilhelm Normann, German chemist (hydrogenated liquid fat creating trans fat), dies at 69
May 20 Joe Carr, American Pro Football HOF contributor (NFL President 1921-39), dies from a heart attack at 59
May 22 Ernst Toller, German playwright, commits suicide at 45
May 22 Jiri Mahen, Czech author (b. 1882)
May 25 Joseph Duveen, British art connoisseur (Elgin marbles), dies at 69
May 26 Charles Horace Mayo, American surgeon and co-founder (Mayo Clinic), dies at 74
May 26 Cornelis Jacobus Snijders, Dutch military leader - Supreme Commander of Dutch Navy (1910-18), dies at 86
May 27 Joseph Roth, Austrian-Jewish journalist (Fluctuate ohne Ende), dies of pneumonia at 44
May 29 Ursula Ledóchowska, Polish-Austrian Catholic saint and foundress of the Ursulines of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus, dies of a carcinoma at 74
May 30 Floyd Roberts, American auto racer, killed in a 100 mph crash during 1939 Indianapolis 500 at 39

On This Day